Conan O'Brien proves a worthy recipient of Mark Twain award in a new Netflix special
Back in March, a group of comic luminaries — from John Mulaney to Nikki Glaser — gathered at the Kennedy Center to celebrate O'Brien for receiving the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor.
Remembering Peter Schickele, the satirical composer behind P.D.Q. Bach
Claiming to be a musicologist, the composer and arranger performed premieres of "newly unearthed" works by the nonexistent Bach. Schickele died Jan. 16. Originally broadcast in 1985.
How the war between Israel and Hamas widened into a regional conflict
New York Times correspondent David Sanger says that Iran and its proxies are posing new challenges: "We're seeing outbreaks of low-level but highly damaging conflict all over the region."
A would-be 'Martyr!' searches for meaning in this wry debut novel
Kaveh Akbar's Martyr! is very much its own creation, but you might think of it as an Iranian American spin on John Kennedy Toole's A Confederacy of Dunces — wedded to Donna Tartt's The Goldfinch.
25 years later, 'The Sopranos' remains a TV masterpiece
Tony Soprano was far from the typical protagonist of a TV drama. He wasn't just flawed; at times, he was utterly amoral. But audiences stayed with him — right up until the series' perfect ending.
Talking 'Succession' with Jesse Armstrong, Kieran Culkin and Matthew Macfadyen
The HBO series recently won six Emmy awards. We talked about the show with head writer/creator Armstrong in 2023, plus we listen back to conversations with Cuklin and Macfadyen from 2021 and 2022.
Home schooling is surging, but lax regulation can leave kids vulnerable to abuse
Home schooling is now America's fastest growing form of education, but Washington Post reporter Peter Jamison notes, "It's remarkable how little oversight there is of home-schooled children."
Remembering Tom Shales, a TV critic with a biting wit
Known for his strong opinions, the Pulitzer Prize-winning Washington Post critic also reviewed films on Morning Edition for two decades. Shales died Jan. 13. Originally broadcast in 1989.